Situations Change
by sunfire1108
Summary: AU, Bleach gone architecture. NanaoXShunsui, RangikuXToushirou implied. Lemon.
1. Ch 1

**I don't own Bleach. **

Studio began every 2:40 on Monday, the same as every other Monday any other week. This particular Monday was the start of a new semester, a new year, and a whole new set of problems for Nanao Ise to solve as an Architecture student.

"Alright now everyone write your name on an index card with the name of last semester's studio professor on it and the grade you received from them that semester and hand it back into me. This is to make sure that you've all come back for another final year here." announced the coordinator.

"Nanao! Hey Nanao! Hey!" whispered a busty blonde-haired girl from a studio bay.

"Hello Rangiku." replied Nanao "Are you actually going to put your real grade this time or are you going to lie like you did last year so you'd get to pick a better professor?"

"Oh shut it you, I'll do what I have to so I can still get out of here in one piece. Five years of this shit hole is enough to kill a person. After my first three, I was already sick of it. But of course you wouldn't know about that now would you Miss Nanaoperfectpants?" Rangiku retorted.

"I can't help that I actually do the work and get a good grade now can I? Maybe you should take my lead this year Rangiku and try not to sleep with the professor just to salvage your grade." she said flatly.

"Ouch, you know, that hurts. Why must you always accuse me of such perverse actions?" smiled Rangiku.

"Maybe because it's true?" said a tall, tattooed, red-headed man.

"Oh yea… I forgot about that, thanks Renji." replied Rangiku, smiling.

"Hey Nanao. How was your summer in Rome? Did you actually get to go out and see any of the sights or did you spend all of your time in a book looking at them?" asked Renji.

Nanao stared at Renji with her usual stoic face "…Thanks Renji, it was just fine, and tell you the truth I never opened a book the whole time I was there." Renji and Rangiku gasped.

"You've got to be kidding." they spoke simultaneously.

"No, wait that's not true. I read whenever I was on a bus going somewhere… it seems to me that whenever we did arrive at one particular place I always knew more than the tour guide did."

"Well that shouldn't be of such a shock to you. You know more than everybody all the time anyway. You actually remember the name of the guy who did that waterfall building…"

"Don't you mean Falling Water? And that would be Frank Lloyd Wright… good God Rangiku we've been here for five years and you STILL can't remember his name?" asked a wide-eyed Nanao.

"Uh, of course I can! I was just testing you… oh hey, we need to turn in our cards. Okay, I got a… B in Hitsugaya Toshirou's studio last semester." muttered Rangiku.

"B for me in Soifon's studio. Rangiku, I thought you managed to get a C? Your jury was pitiful…" inquired Renji with a raised brow.

As Rangiku tackled Renji to the ground over his snide comments, Nanao wrote down an A in Unohanna's studio. She gathered up the cards from her two friends and handed them to the coordinator.

"Now, settle down, settle down. We have a few changes this year. All of the usual Thesis Advisors have returned this year except for one, professor Ichimaru who has for some reason disappeared, along with professor Aizen. They will not be returning for at least this semester."

A pang of anxiety hit Nanao in the stomach. _No! Ichimaru was who I had picked out at the end of last year as my advisor! Damn it! Now I'll have someone I have no idea what his teaching skills are like!_

"For any of you who had signed up for professor Ichimaru or Aizen, I am sorry to say you will not be able to transfer out into another advisor's care, we have no other placements for you. We do have a capable replacement for the two of them, however, and he will be here shortly. I'll allow him his own introduction. Ah, here he is now." finished the coordinator.

Nanao looked over towards the door where a tall, built man wearing a tan coat and jeans stood leaning against the door frame. He had a kind face, but was not shaved and of all things had a pony tail to contain his hair. _Who the hell is this guy?_

"My apologies for my lateness class, I am Shunsui Kyoraku, the replacement for professor Ichimaru." said the man.

Rangiku nudged Nanao and whispered "Oooh, hot stuff there! I would have loved to have gotten that guy. You're so lucky Nanao!"

Nanao shrugged off Rangiku's comment _Oh Rangiku, get your mind out of the gutter._

"Now then." the coordinator began again. "Advisors, please read off your students and take them to their separate studio bays to begin your class. Professor Kyoraku, you may go first."

"Thank you. Alright I have three of you; Kira, Izuru, Hinamori, Momo, and Ise, Nanao. Please come with me."

As the three students siphoned off with their professor, Renji and Rangiku waved goodbye to Nanao.

Izuru and Momo moved close to Nanao as they walked a few paces behind their professor.

"Hey, have you guys heard anything about this one? I heard he was a hard ass from Penn, doesn't take any crap from anybody and really gives you a tough time if you don't get your concept down in a week." said Izuru in a low voice.

"Yea? I heard he's like a modern day Louis Kahn, he's supposed to rock. You heard anything Nanao?" asked Momo.

Nanao only stared blankly at the back of her professor. "Nothing."

They quickly arrived in the last studio bay in the back of the room. "Alright, choose a spot and then begin moving all of your boards and supplies down. If you need help with anything, just ask me." Their professor said and he winked at Nanao. Nanao looked away, trying to ignore the gesture.

Izuru and Momo ran off to their old places to grab their belongings as Nanao went one bay over to where she was last year. Picking up her drafting board, she moved back to the other bay where her professor stood and walked to the corner near the window. Nanao struggled a little under the board's weight and managed to catch her foot on one of the desk legs. As she began to fall, a pair of hands reached out and balanced her. One hand tightly gripped her arm and another on the board kept her from crashing into the window and possibly breaking something. Nanao flushed with embarrassment and looked down to reassess her footing. The strong body of her professor stood behind her until she managed to stand up straight. As Nanao turned her head to look towards her professor's face, his head had managed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and they wound up colliding foreheads.

"Ow!" chirped Nanao as she placed her drafting board on a table safely before clutching a red patch on her forehead.

"Nnh, ow." mumbled Kyoraku as he backed off from Nanao, a hand on his forehead as well.

An awkward moment passed before Izuru and Momo returned with their belongings. Nanao looked back at her professor. He was still rubbing his forehead. Izuru and Momo looked from Nanao to Kyoraku confused, noticing the two's matching red bumps.

Finally, Momo asked, "Uh, are you okay? What just –"

"It's nothing, I just smacked my head on my board when I was putting it down." interjected Nanao before Kyoraku could get a word in.

Izuru frowned at Nanao. He didn't believe her, something was up. He decided he would shrug it off and ask about it later. Momo, taking the hint from Izuru decided the same.

They all stood there for a moment, no one saying a word when Kyoraku decided to break the silence.

"So! This is your thesis year. Let's get started shall we? Like I said, I'm Shunsui Kyoraku. A little about me, well, back when I was doing my college time at Penn, I did my thesis project based on Louis Kahn's Embassy in Bangladesh. I also got my Master's from Penn in which I acquired an extensive knowledge on many of the buildings Kahn had produced. I can be a little rough around the edges at times, and may even snap a comment or two at you, but I am not harmful. I can assure you, my jeering at you is merely my way of testing my students. But enough about me. Names. I know you all know each other, but considering I'm new here, I would like for you to introduce yourselves. You can start." Kyoraku pointed to Momo.

"Oh! Uh… Okay, uhm, I'm Momo Hinamori." said Momo, blushing.

"Would you care to tell us anything else? Perhaps a favorite architect? Style? Something more about you, please." asked Kyoraku.

Momo thought for a moment, then replied, "I would have to say Gehry. I love post-modern, and his forms are totally awesome. It's really free-form."

Kyoraku smirked, "Thank you Momo. I'm 'totally' glad I asked you."

Izuru chuckled and Momo frowned at him.

Kyoraku looked at Izuru. "How about you emo pretty boy? Why don't you introduce yourself?"

The smile on Izuru's face quickly disappeared. "Izuru Kira. I'm not emo, and I'm intrigued by Scarpa. I tend to think like him I believe, and I can write with both hands at the same time like him, too." said Izuru feeling proud.

Kyoraku smirked again, "Well I hope that can come of some use to you in ahem other activities. I've seen some of your work and it seems that it's all for your 'own enjoyment'."

Momo laughed this time and Izuru looked angrily at Kyoraku, who kept a very cool expression on his face. Nanao had stared at her professor through all of his interjections. Appalled by his comments, she huffed to herself. Kyoraku noticed and decided on his next target.

"And what about you miss…?"

"Nanao Ise." she spoke coolly. "I enjoy Aalto's work and believe that his principles on classical architecture becoming modern architecture generate extremely powerful and simple forms."

"Oh, so you happen to know something about architecture, hm? Well I hope you're going to be concentrating on more than just his furniture…" Kyoraku grinned.

Izuru chuckled again, but before Kyoraku finished Nanao interjected tartly, "Well at least Aalto has an actual system of form instead of the most random geometric shapes placed throughout a plan like Kahn."

Izuru and Momo stared wide-eyed at Nanao. They both were thinking the same thing. _Here we go…_ Kyoraku cocked his head to the side slightly, "And that's what you believe?"

"Evidently. His architecture makes no sense and it has no meat to it. It's like he was back in kindergarten playing with wooden blocks."

The verbal tennis match began, the ball back in Kyoraku's court.

"Apparently your closed mind has yet to grasp the higher technique of what Kahn was trying to display in his plans and elevations. He was even a master in sectional thinking; the experiences he created between floors of the building—"

"…Have no coherency. Aalto makes direct visual connections and useful forms on the interior with centralized circulation that allows for –"

"And what the hell do you think Kahn did in the Embassy in Bangladesh? Nanao, you won't be able to win this argument." he said coolly, spiking the verbal ball onto her side of the court.

Kyoraku continued, "Kahn's circulation is all about centralization of the circulation to pass through the main part of the embassy, where the meeting rooms are. As for his 'random geometric shapes', each one holds meaning in a bigger theory that extends to each unique program in each space. The extrusions of points based on each of these shapes forms a new and unique space no matter where you travel inside. I've been there Nanao, have you?" He pulled out a picture from his notebook that was set on the desk next to him.

He tossed out a gorgeous black and white photo of the interior of the Embassy in Bangladesh. She gawked at the photo, having never realized how beautiful it did look. She stood speechless, shaking slightly, having never been outdone before in an argument over architects. Izuru and Momo still looked wide-eyed between the two. Kyoraku merely smiled at Nanao and said,

"I didn't expect you to know everything about him, but I'm moderately impressed you did have something to say unlike these two over here. Thank you for trying."

Nanao dropped her head slightly and sat on the stool nearby. Kyoraku continued on.

"Now where were we… oh yes, this is your thesis year. I hope to do just as well as Ichimaru would be doing if he were here, however considering the state of you three and your knowledge, I plan on revamping it slightly and do better than he would be doing. We will be retracing theory in this studio; we will not be concentrating heavily on green design, although it should still be inherent in your projects. Now, for Wednesday I want…"

Nanao drifted off into space as she listened to her professor speak. _That's the first time someone has actually been able to talk me down. He made me feel like an idiot… why I oughtta… there will be other times Nanao, take it easy. Just dazzle him with the things you can do in studio, like modeling. Yea, that'll shut him up._


	2. Ch 2

It had been 2 months since their first day, and Nanao's eyelids were heavy and she blinked a few times to try to wake up. 4 AM and the stupid model was taking forever. 5 days, 2 bottles of Sobo glue, 20 sheets of basswood, over 50 Exacto blades, and countless cups of coffee later and the model STILL wasn't done. _This has got to be the most taxing project I have ever done… Why am I in architecture again? I don't think it even matters anymore. I just need to get this model done so I can go to sleep, take my Site Investigations exam tomorrow… er, crap it's today in 5 hours, keep typing up my thesis paper due Friday… God it never ends. Maybe THIS time Kyoraku will like it, I mean he didn't like the last 5 models I've built and that's my specialty! This is what I do! I make models at top quality and OWWWW!!!!_ "FUCK!!" Nanao cursed out loud as she sliced right through her thumb. Quickly pulling away her hand from her hold to examine the cut, a few blood droplets landed near her model, one small one hitting a party wall.

"Oh, damn it! That's the last thing I need… blood all over my model." _Wow… way to go architect, think about the model before I think about myself._ She grabbed the nearest napkin and attempted to blot out the blood now running down her thumb.

"Nanao?" A familiar voice resonated behind her.

Nanao looked up.

"Kyoraku? What are you doing here at this hour?"

"I just thought I'd come by to see what progress you have been making, and to see if I could help you at all. You seem to be struggling with the assignments I've been giving you, so I thought I might be able to lend a hand." he stated in his usual, causal tone.

"Oh, well… uhm, good – Ow, oh…" Nanao looked down at her bleeding thumb; the napkin dampening the bleeding wasn't doing a great job and had seeped through.

"Nanao, you're bleeding. Here." Kyoraku quickly took her hand a raised it above her head, another napkin held down on her thumb.

"Does this really help? I don't like doing this just for your amusement. You make a fool of me half the time we're in studio anyway. I'd like to have some shred of dignity while I'm here working without you to destroy it." Nanao said, as tart as ever.

"I was an architecture student once too you know. You're not the only one who has worked until 4 AM and later on something some 'bastard of a professor' wants you to do and manages to cut your hand open doing it. The only difference between you and me is that I wound up gluing it shut with super glue." chuckled Kyoraku.

"I never said – wait, you what? That's absurd. Did it ever heal properly?" she asked.

He held up his left hand for her to see the deep scar he managed to leave on the pointer and thumb about 8 years ago.

"Yeesh that looks like that was all kinds of painful."

"I had to go to the emergency room later for it, even though I did glue it together. The doctor wasn't too pleased with my means to fix it. It was even more painful trying to get the glue off my hand and off the cut. But the model was worth it." he replied with a faint smile.

"All of that just over a model? I think you're nuts." she frowned, looking away from her model and pulling her hand out of the air.

"Maybe, but sometimes you have to give something your all if you want it badly enough. Has the bleeding stopped?"

She examined her thumb, the bleeding had subsided though it was still throbbing with pain.

"Yes, I think so. I just need a band-aid and I can go back to work. Can you grab me one from that drawer over there?" She began to peel the napkin off the fresh cut and blow on it lightly.

Kyoraku pulled out a finger bandage from the drawer and some antiseptic ointment. Nanao began opening the packaging to the band-aid when he stopped her.

"Here, let me do it. You'll make it bleed again." He gently took her hand and spread antiseptic on the wound.

Nanao shivered slightly as he took her hand; he had never touched her before, or interacted this closely until now. She was taken back by his kindness towards her, for while they were in studio he usually picked on her the most, making it incredibly hard for her to prove herself. He had the eye of Izuru and Momo and they interacted as friends, but to Nanao, he acted as bitterly to her as she was cold to him. Their first day meeting was what set them apart and they had never recovered from it since.

Nanao looked up at his face as he carefully tended to her injury; his face had lost its professor-like quality and had become more… intimate. A slight smile had spread across his demeanor as if he was enjoying this moment with her.

After placing the bandage on her thumb, his gaze moved from her hand to her eyes. Nanao blushed as they had locked into a moment for more than a second, and looked away. She suddenly felt his thumb lightly touch the bottom of her chin and he shifted her vision towards him.

"You have very pretty eyes Nanao." he said with his velvety voice.

"They're indigo." she said automatically, unable to look away from him.

"I've never seen indigo before. But they were the first thing I noticed about you when I saw you."

She blushed again, "Thank you."

She was nervous and something was making her hot, was it their proximity? _When did he get so close to me? And why is he looking at me like that? _Her eyes were becoming heavy as her focus moved from his eyes to his lips, noticing how much closer they were to hers every second that passed without words. _Say something! What are you doing? He's your professor!_ But she refused to listen to her inner voice, and all inhibitions passed as his lips touched hers in a chaste kiss.

Her hands rose slowly to the stubble on his cheeks, skimming them lazily with her fingertips, finally to rest on the back of his neck. She drew herself ever closer to his firm body, pressing against his form. His hands slowly wrapped around the back of her body, raising carefully up the length of her back. One hand moved to the back of her neck pushing Nanao farther into the kiss, lightly dipping his tongue into her mouth to fully taste her. Nanao couldn't breathe, her mind was reeling, and she didn't care. This embrace was all she could feel.

Kyoraku slowed the kiss and breathed. Nanao opening her eyes, asked, "Where did that come from?" Nanao asked more in question of herself than of Kyoraku.

Kyoraku placed a hand to her cheek, feeling the warmth of it as he rested it there, he replied,

"I don't know. But you're intriguing Nanao. You're a mystery to me and I like it."

His thumb skimmed her lips, feeling the soft touch and rested it against the corner of her mouth. Nanao closed her eyes and gently kissed it. With one swift motion Kyoraku had taken her lips again and had pushed her against the desk. He arched her back some, overpowering her in the deep kiss. Nanao braced herself against the desk as she felt his hips push roughly against her. She moaned into his mouth, her hands quickly trying to regain control by grabbing onto the fabric of his tan coat. He trailed kisses down her jaw line, a light finger gently following his path. He moved down further to her neck, to the hollow near her collar bone, gently licking the area. A breath hitched in Nanao's throat. He sucked on the skin, making his way back up her neck again and bit down lightly. She arched against him, enjoying the sensation. Kyoraku's hand traveled to the top button on her shirt and undid it. Undid it, undid it, undid it and undid it until he felt bare skin against his fingertip. Drawing patterns on the taut skin of her stomach, he began to push away the fabric with his other hand causing Nanao to try and follow suit to him. As she pushed off his tan coat, she felt a hand trace her ribs so delicately.

Nanao managed to pull away Kyoraku's coat and undo the buttons on his shirt as well, pushing back the silken material to reveal his toned chest and muscles. Her skin collided with his as she wrapped her arms around him, feeling herself melt into his embrace. She felt his lips against her shoulder as he undid the snap to her bra and it fell away. A leathery hand reached forward to palm the soft mound of her breast while his mouth traveled down to tease the nipple of the other one. Nanao hissed and breathed hard as she felt his teeth skim the pink flesh and felt it rise. Her head fell back just as her hand went to her trademark clip and released it.

The tinkle of a belt clip now surrounded them as Kyoraku began undoing her belt, his mouth now attending to her other breast. A small snap and a quick tug at her zipper and Nanao was partly free of lower restrictions. But Kyoraku stood up straight, discontinuing his earlier task. She felt a finger lightly trace the line of her panties, and she felt her body ache with want, while tightly clenching her eyes shut. Kyoraku felt her thrust her hips slightly, her hot quickened breath on his chest and he knew he couldn't make her wait. His hand descended against hot skin towards an equally hot and wet core. Nanao had turned to putty as she felt him reach even closer to her soft wetness. He played with her for a moment, teasing her opening with a single finger and she groaned into his arm. She twitched for a second, and thrust her hips again. She was tired of waiting. A swift motion and a loud groan later, his diligent fingers began massaging her wet core.

Nanao felt everything and nothing as he worked her body. A pleasant heated numbness swept over her body as he continued to reach deeper. Kyoraku took her lips again quickly as he felt her hips gyrate against his hand. He felt her leg wrap around his to keep her from falling against the pleasurable weakness. His mouth quickly moved back to her breast, teasing the flesh again until Nanao moaned at his touch. Nanao placed a hand against the jean between her legs, causing Kyoraku's fingers to go even deeper inside of her. He felt her silky walls begin to contract as she moaned one final time and released her body.

Nanao collapsed against the desk, her body trembling from such a powerful release. Her eyes still shut tight, she began taking in the moment that had just occurred. _Oh. My. __God.__ Been a while hasn't it?_ She agreed with herself and breathed out one last long breath. As Nanao opened her eyes, a question escaped from Kyoraku's lips.

"I'm going to assume you enjoyed that?" He smiled snidely.

Nanao replied in a scratchy tone, but still in her usual tartness, "I'd think you're an idiot if you couldn't figure that out."

Kyoraku chuckled lightly, carefully picking her up and placing her on the couch along the opposite wall.

"Why standing?" _Why the hell did you just ask that? Idiot…_

"I figured it would be fun, and I didn't want to move just yet. Besides, I'm saving the best for last, but that you need to be lying down for."

Her eyes suddenly darted to his, which had a seductive look to them. She looked down at him, watching his hands undo the belt buckle to his pants, which then fell to the floor with a clatter. Distracted by the belt, Nanao didn't notice him pounce towards her and overtake her body with his.

The weight of Kyoraku's body covered Nanao's as his hands began mapping her frame of every dip and curve, fully taking in where each muscle was placed and where he felt her give greatest response. Her fingertips drew light circles on his back as he continued the pleasure torture to her skin. Every few moments he would change direction, as if to lose her in his quest to find what places he could to make her shiver with pleasure.

Everything on Nanao's body burned, she hadn't felt this way… ever. Her head hadn't stopped reeling from the moment he kissed her, and her body continued to tingle with every kiss and motion Kyoraku made on her.

At one point Kyoraku's journey led him back to her jeans, which he slowly peeled away from her body and discarded on the floor. The palm of his hand traveled the length of her inner thigh and Nanao shuddered. Again his fingertip stroked the waistline to her panties, carefully inching his way just inside. As he hooked his finger, he brought the material down her body, all the while kissing the places that had been hidden from him. Nanao watched him in a daze as his face disappeared between her legs. The familiar numbness returned to her body as she felt a tongue dance across her core. Her fingers gripped the cushion of the couch, and she bit her bottom lip to suppress multiple groans that still managed to escape her lips. Nanao's body arched into the couch, feeling the length of his tongue enter her. Her eyes blinked shut as her hand went to his head, tangling her fingers into his mess of hair as he pushed if at all possible deeper into her body.

Nanao couldn't feel her legs as she was driven to yet another powerful release. Her fingers tightened into a harsh grip on the couch as she was slowly brought down from her high. Eyes still shut tight, she could feel Kyoraku's hot breath on her stomach as he began to move back up her body.

_And the hits just keep on coming, _she thought, opening her eyes. A wide grin spread across Kyoraku's face. He loved having this power over her.

"Kyoraku, I –" she started and he quickly put a finger to her lips to silence her.

"It's Shunsui. I'm not your professor right now. And I'm still not done yet." he whispered into her ear.

_Like I said, it just keeps on coming. _She smiled lightly as he licked the lobe of her ear, drew it into his mouth and sucked on it weakly.

As he began to push off the rest of his clothing, she quickly took over for him, wanting to play some part of this pleasure trip as well. As his lower extremity came free of their restrictions, she cast a glance down the length of him. _Even the lower half is good – no – great. _He caught her eyes again, and dove in for another deep kiss. Nanao's hands moved on their own accord, down his body to where his prominent length protruded. Fingertips lightly stroked him and he gasped slightly into her mouth. She could feel her lips curl into a smile as she kissed him and her fingers played with him. He quickly grabbed her wrist, pulling it up and behind her head. Pinning her down, he spoke,

"Playtime is over. This is where the real fun begins." and with his words he settled at her entrance.

Before he could make his final move, she whispered his name into his ear. "Shun…sui…"

"Just what I wanted to hear." and the plunge.

Nanao's body trembled at his first motion; she held him there for a moment as she felt a wash of heat graze her skin. A few loud gasps escaped her lips and she quickly shut her eyes. Kyoraku's quickened breath heated her shoulder as he pulled out slowly, only to push back into her and register another few gasps from her lips. They took their time, settling into a pattern, moving with each other in a rhythm that suited them. Nanao's heart raced, and she could feel Kyoraku's lips against her neck, sucking and biting the skin until it was swollen. _That's going to leave a mark_, she told herself, _that's going to be real fun to explain to Rangiku…_but all the same, she didn't care. As their bodies rocked together, the heat grew at a constant and soon a bead of sweat formed on her forehead. It slowly trickled down the side of her face and he kissed it away.

Kyoraku put his hands to her lower back, and slowly lifted her so they were sitting up, Nanao straddling him. Looking deeply into his eyes, she rocked into his body, feeling his hands wrap around her waist tightly. As her lips grazed his neck, she found the place just under his chin that made him groan harshly, and sucked on it. Pushing roughly into her body one last time, he released himself with a heavy breath. Nanao, close herself, continued grinding against him. Kyoraku found her soft breast with his mouth again and Nanao couldn't take another minute. Her weak body finally released for the third time that night, shuddering harshly.

Ragged breaths protruded from the two of them as Kyoraku slowly laid her back down on the couch. Nanao's chest heaved against his as she breathed onto her shoulder. _I can't feel my legs… How does he do that?_ _That's not the question I should be asking – what the hell just happened? _Nanao's conscience was kicking back in.He kissed her neck lightly and pulled away a little, looking into her eyes, smiling. Their gaze locked for a while and Nanao became uncomfortable. She believed he was staring right through her.

Looking away she said, "This shouldn't have happened. I'm a student, you're my professor."

Kyoraku looked hurt, "I told you, I wasn't your professor right then. I'm still not now. Studio probably wasn't the greatest place to have this happen, but how else could I have done this? Nanao…"

Nanao sat up and Kyoraku allowed her. As she grabbed for her shirt, she composed herself in a light tone, "You shouldn't have done this."

"And what exactly were you doing? You never stopped me. How can you say you didn't want this either?" He retorted.

Nanao was at a loss. She didn't have a reason, but she knew that the situation they were in wasn't a good one. She never gave into feeling things like this, she was always composed, and always the structured one; impenetrable.

"I can't say I didn't want this, but I know it can't continue. This really can't happen again. Kyoraku –"

Kyoraku was becoming frustrated "I told you, it's Shunsui, and I think it should. This can work Nanao, please believe me."

Nanao was starting to break, she could feel the hardened walls that she'd built up for so long start to crumble. He was a wrecking ball, trying to get through.

"This is not who I am, Kyoraku. This is –"

"Stop this, give in for once!" he shouted.

Nanao stared at him, the look on his face penetrated her eyes and she shut them to keep him out. She felt his hand on her chin pulling her into a heated kiss. She could feel something behind his kiss, a power that she tried to refuse. She did not return his kiss.

When he pulled away she finally said "I'm sorry, but I can't."

Re-buttoning the top button to her shirt and re-buckling the belt to her jeans, she stood and left the studio bay. Before she had completely left his vision, Kyoraku saw a small tear fall down her cheek.


	3. Ch 3

"Today we discuss beams. The loads on sheer and moment diagrams. Does anyone know where to begin?"

Nanao was half paying attention in structures class, Professor Byakuya Kuchiki's voice faintly hitting her ears. She didn't want to be anywhere near people; she had just begun to forget, if only for a second, that she and Kyoraku had… _done some things I can't BELIEVE I did… _

"Miss Ise, tell me, how do you find the moment diagram for this particular beam?" asked Kuchiki pointing to a problem on the blackboard.

Nanao snapped back to reality, "What?"

People turned to look at Nanao, had she really not been paying attention?

"Miss Ise, I find it most distressing that you haven't paid one ounce of attention to this problem that we have been attempting to solve, or rather the entire class period. Your skills in problem solving have fallen today Miss Ise, and I am disappointed. Please see me after class."

_Shit… the absolute most last person I want to talk to. _Nanao nodded to her professor, and a few whispers hummed across the classroom.

Rangiku glanced over at Nanao, trying to catch her eye. _What in the world is going on with her? She's not usually like this… __Hm__, I'll try and catch up with her later. _Rangiku thought about it the rest of class, trying to pinpoint what could have happened with her in the last 24 hours. Nanao had told Rangiku the day before that she had been pleased with studio and everything else going on, she even had a bit of a smile on her face. What, then, was the problem?

Class ended and Nanao went up to Byakuya's desk. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

Byakuya looked at her with his trademark stare and spoke, his voice like daggers "Yes, Miss Ise, I am shocked that out of all the students who have attended this course from the beginning, you are the one who has yielded their attention. This day in particular."

Nanao felt defeated, "I'm sorry professor, I pulled an all nighter last night and I haven't gotten much sleep in general lately. It won't happen again."

"See that it doesn't. That's all." he said and turned away from her.

Nanao went back to her desk and grabbed her belongings and hurried out the door, nearly slamming into Rangiku as she left the classroom.

"Nanao! Wait up. Hey, are you alright?" asked Rangiku.

"Yea, fine, just didn't sleep last night. Look, I have to go, I'll see you later." Nanao hurried away from Rangiku and pushed through the door to the stairs.

Rangiku only looked to where Nanao exited as she felt an air of depression linger in her footsteps.


	4. Ch 4

A full week had passed since Nanao's encounter with Kyoraku, and their meetings in normal studio hours had been extremely cold, colder than their usual crits. Izuru and Momo had noticed the overall silence between them and talked about it quietly while neither Nanao nor Kyoraku noticed. Izuru and Momo's discussions immediately caused Momo to tell them to Rangiku.

Rangiku had known Nanao even before they had gotten to college, and she knew generally all of the problems Nanao was going through. This particular semester, Rangiku had been immersed in her own sets of issues, and their separation in studios hadn't helped their situation any. Rangiku saw Nanao a few times between studios, in some of their other classes, and once in a while on the weekends. Nanao never usually had anything big to tell Rangiku, because Rangiku was the one who always had the news. A new guy she had found, what happened at the party when she was so drunk she couldn't keep her focus, sometimes what happened in studio, all the newest gossip, anything. Rangiku confided everything to Nanao, though Nanao never really had much to tell Rangiku. When Momo told Rangiku about her newest bout of silence, she became worried. And the wheels in her head began to turn…

Nanao sat alone in studio that night, attempting to draft the study model she had made earlier that afternoon. Flashes of what had happened last week kept coming back in to her mind and she shuddered. She still couldn't believe she gave into him like that, she couldn't… _that feeling of him against me, his skin… it was soft. His hands tracing my_ – no. She had to forget it.

Suddenly she heard someone burst through the door. She hoped like hell it wasn't him – thank God it wasn't. Rangiku came in and pounced on her, throwing her arms around her.

"Ran, come on. Not right now." whined Nanao.

"Not right now?! What?! You never say that to me! Come on, let's go out. It's a Friday, the night is young, and you haven't seen me in a while! Besides, Momo says something is wrong with you and I plan on getting you drunk and finding out exactly what it is."

Nanao felt a pit form in her stomach. _People noticed._ How could they not notice it though? Nanao was usually quiet, but not that quiet.

Rangiku began to pull Nanao off of her stool, grabbing Nanao's coat and dragged her out of the studio. Nanao barely put up a fight, and obliged to go out.

They got to the bar about fifteen minutes later, and as soon as Rangiku ushered Nanao in the door, Nanao knew she didn't want to be there. Rangiku plopped Nanao into a barstool and ordered them a few Smirnoff Vodka shots. Rangiku took her shot as soon as she got it, knocking it back like a pro and making eye contact with the bartender, motioning him to keep them coming as she downed them. Nanao looked down at her shot, contemplating. She looked at Rangiku who was taking her second shot eyeing a man who was on the other side of the bar. _Maybe I should just throw inhibition into the wind today – but look at what happened the last time I did… But Rangiku's here though and I'm pretty sure she won't let anything happen. She was the one who brought me here after all. _

"Nanao drink your shot! You are going shot for shot with me tonight, so you'd BETTER drink it. No, you don't have a choice, you drink it, or I make you drink it." Rangiku said in a mock stern voice.

Nanao still had reservations, but took the shot nonetheless. As the Vodka went down, it burned her throat a little. She winced and gave a light smile to Rangiku who told the bartender to give her another. As Nanao took the second shot, the burning sensation lessened. And the more she drank, the less she felt.

Two hours passed and Nanao was feeling the full effects of the alcohol and she was smiling at everything. Rangiku was acting a little sloppy as well, her arm around Nanao and the other around the man who she saw on the other side of the bar. They were having a very odd discussion about vegetables and which ones they liked.

"I'm such a fan of brocococoli… brococoli… broccoli. Heh, Nanao, I bet you like plums."

"Ragniku, plums aren't a vegematable. Veginatle. Vegetable. Hehehe, but I do like them anyway."

The man who Rangiku had her arm around spoke "Rangiku, you said cock! HAH!" and he pulled Rangiku away and kissed her.

Nanao stared for a moment then looked away. She suddenly thought about the night again, and could have sworn she felt a hand on her lower back. _Man, how drunk am I that I'm actually feeling __Kyoraku's__ hands again? _But she wasn't just thinking it, she really was feeling it. Another man who had been eyeing Nanao all night had finally walked over to her and put his hand on her back. Nanao was too drunk to care who was touching her, but when she felt his lips against her neck she became hot. She knew something didn't feel right.

A loud voice suddenly shook her and she turned. The man who stood behind her backed away and Nanao saw a fist fly through the air towards his face, which landed with a loud smack. Nanao's head was spinning from turning in the chair too fast and she thought she saw a familiar face, but blacked out.

* * *

Nanao couldn't see, but could hear the voices around her.

"Rangiku, are you alright?"

"I was fine until you and Hitsugaya took my hot hook up off of me!"

"Hey, he was making some passes that shouldn't even be seen in public. Besides, you're my student, and I am allowed to take care of you. Kyoraku, how is Nanao?"

"I think she's fine, she's just had a few too many shots. Rangiku, how many did you two have?"

"At least six, but I think Nanao had a few more than I did. I'm not sure, I was getting distracted by my HOT HOOK UP! Why were you two there anyway?!"

"Kyoraku and I live right next door to each other, across the street from this bar. We were about to have a drink when we saw you guys getting a little hung up. You know Kyoraku, Nanao doesn't look so good. You should take her back to her place to sleep it off. Rangiku, where does she live? Rangiku? Aw crap, she's out too. Well, I'm taking her to my apartment, Kyoraku, you should take Nanao to yours. I'll see you tomorrow. Don't give me that look, I don't take advantage of my students. Can I say the same for you?"

"Shut it Toshirou. I just don't think Nanao will appreciate what's happened when she wakes up. She's not very happy with me right now – do you think you could take her Toshirou?"

"I can't Kyoraku, I've only got one couch, and Rangiku is enough to handle. Especially when she wakes up – er… uh…"

"I'm not even going to ask. I'll take her. Good night Toshirou."

"Night Kyoraku."

* * *


	5. Ch 5

A few hours later and Nanao's head was feeling two sizes too big, throbbing, and the world was spinning. She opened her eyes slowly, and had no idea where she was. The last thing she remembered was plums and broccoli and a hand on… _wait, am I back at that guys place? DID I JUST DO__…__ Fuck…_ Nanao sat bolt upright, and immediately felt queasy. Putting a hand to her forehead she fell straight back down. She could feel a blanket covering her, and lifting the covers saw that she still had her clothes on. She was lying on a couch in a small apartment, and no light came in through the open windows. A mild breeze rustled the curtains and she heard a creek in the floorboards. A shadow appeared in a hallway door that led somewhere. The shadow was still fuzzy, but recognizable. His tall frame and built shoulders slowly walked towards her direction.

"How are you feeling? I brought you a glass of water. Drink it and lie on your side, your stomach and head will thank you in the morning." Kyoraku's voice sounded like dark chocolate tasted.

Nanao sat up more slowly this time, keeping her eyes on Kyoraku, and took the water from him. As she tipped the glass back, the cool water hit her lips and it was like tasting heaven in a glass. As the refreshing liquid went down her throat, she felt her head clear a little. Her eyes narrowed and she thought hard for a moment.

"Were you the one in the bar hitting on me?"

Kyoraku snickered a little, "No, but I was the one hitting on the guy behind you. More like decking the guy behind you. You look like you didn't want him touching you and well… my instinct took over, what can I say." he shrugged.

Nanao was relieved to not be in the apartment of the man in the bar, but she was still not at ease of being in her professor's apartment.

"Thank you, but I should get going." as she started to get up, Kyoraku put his hands to her shoulders and put her back down onto the couch.

"I don't think so, you are in no condition to be moving around."

"You may be my professor, but you aren't my mother. I can do what I want."

"I don't care, I'm saying it as the guy who you gave into one passionate night ago."

_I don't believe he just went there. _"How dare you. You have no right – "

"I want to know exactly why it is that you won't let me in. Why is it that you were able to let your guard down for only so long, until you crawled back inside yourself and started blocking out things that could make you feel. You believe that you're hard core, and that other's see you that way, but what they don't realize is that you hide your feelings behind your work; you hide yourself. And because of that, you won't let me in, and you won't let yourself feel." Kyoraku became angry. "God damn it, let go! You want to be an architect?! Then let yourself feel! That's something about Kahn that made him great; he went with his gut. Aalto? Yea, he's like you, he didn't – "

"Shut up." she finally interjected.

"Shut up?" he said.

"Yea, shut up. Because if you don't I can't do this."

"Do what?" he frowned.

Nanao suddenly lunged forward towards his face, her mouth colliding violently with his. He opened his mouth to let her tongue explore his, to feel every crevasse that formed _him._ Placing her hand to the base of his neck she pulled him in deeper, a familiar feeling rising in her stomach. Kyoraku was surprised by her sudden movement and placed a gentle hand to her cheek, his thumb stroking the smooth skin. She slowed down, trying to gain some control over herself. Pulling away from him she spoke,

"I've been broken too many times to count. Everywhere I have turned, I've been let down, backstabbed, used, and punished. I may be 22, but I've endured more than you can imagine in that short span of time. My own family has left scars that I know will never heal, and I've turned to people who wound up using me and broke me down even farther than I thought a person could fall. So you want to know why I couldn't let you in? Why I'm still scared as hell to let you in? Because I'm scared that it will happen again. I've loved people, and they've let me down. Rangiku is probably the only person I've ever said the most about myself to." She paused, again a flashback filled her head. "To give in like I did let a part of me that I thought didn't exist anymore, come out. That scared the hell out of me. I just… I just… " she sighed. "I just thought I could give in for a moment. Only a moment. But when you looked at me like you did, I thought you could see through me. When that happened, I knew what we had done completely screwed up exactly what I had been doing for so long. Letting another person into my life was something I couldn't do. If I let myself trust again…" she couldn't finish.

Nanao merely looked away from his encompassing grey eyes. Her own eyes began to well with tears, but only a single one fell. Kyoraku lightly brushed it away with his thumb.

"I understand. But I want to show you that you _can_ trust me." Kyoraku said softly.

Wrapping his arms around her he picked her up, an arm under her knees and one behind her back and carried her into the short hallway, back into the doorway he came from. Nanao saw the bed on the far side of the room, bathed in moonlight. Kyoraku brought her to it and set her down on the side closest to the window. He followed suit, climbing on the opposite side of the bed. He inched towards her, gently forming his body to mold with her position. She adjusted with him, fitting safely inside his embrace. He wrapped one arm around her, holding her tightly, stroking her arm closest to the mattress. Her muscles relaxed as they lay there, and the world stopped spinning; most of the effects of the alcohol that night had worn off now. She shut her eyes, allowing her head to sink into the pillow that bore his scent. The feeling of him surrounding her, protecting her, was comforting. She didn't want to move, she felt that her place beside him was all she had ever wanted.

Kyoraku lifted his head and gazed upon her serene face. Lightly, he placed a kiss on her cheek, but lingered on the spot for what seemed like forever. He whispered in her ear,

"I swear I will never hurt you, my Nanao."

With that, they succumbed to sleep.


	6. Ch 6

The next morning a cool breeze washed over Nanao's face from the open window and she opened her eyes. A thin white bed sheet covered her up to her chest, and she rolled onto her back. She rubbed her eyes and looked around for her glasses. Finding them on the nightstand, she placed them on her face and looked to the other side of the bed. A sleeping Kyoraku lay there, wrapped up in the same sheet that Nanao still lay under and he was breathing deeply. His head lay on the pillow, his arms clenching it underneath. Nanao looked at him and smiled, remembering what he had said to her last night, _'__I swear I will never hurt you, __my __Nanao__.' He said 'my'. _

Nanao laid back down, still smiling, and gently put her hand to his cheek. Her finger twirled into a few pieces of stray hair that were strewn about his face, and she loved how it felt to touch him. She could feel her heart skipping beats, and she realized how she had never felt this way before. She inched her way closer to him, listening to him breathe and trying not to wake him. Before long, she had closed her eyes again, listening to the rhythm of his heart as her ear pressed against his chest. Suddenly, his hand moved from under the pillow, and he gently wrapped an arm around her, holding her close to him. She looked up as he looked down on her with the kind smile she had seen once before.

"Good morning." Kyoraku said, still sleepy.

Nanao's heart skipped another beat. "Sorry if I woke you."

His smile grew. "You didn't, but I wouldn't want to wake up any other way."

She felt like her heart was going to melt.

"Did you sleep okay?" he asked.

"Mmhmm. Good thing there's no class today, or I wouldn't—"

"Geeze Nanao, is that all you think about?" he said grinning.

She smirked back, "No! Just be happy I'm still here, if there had been class, I'd have been out the door a few hours ago." and she lightly punched his arm.

"Oh, so that's how it's going to be? I see…" and he took hold of her sides, pulling her up the bed on her back and he began to tickle her.

She giggled and laughed as his fingers immediately found where she was most sensitive and he remained there for a few moments. She struggled to get away, and she managed to after she pinched his nipple. She laughed again,

"You squeal like a girl." and she fell into fits of laughter.

Kyoraku pulled himself together and began tickling her again, he replied, "Only if it will get you to laugh. I believe this is the first time I've heard you laugh." and he stopped.

In the fuss, her tank top managed to inch down slightly, and the strap on her shoulder fell to the side of her arm. Kyoraku looked at it for a moment, and put his finger to it. She watched his movement as he slid it carefully back up onto her shoulder. Goosebumps formed on her skin as his thumb slid to her neck, then to her cheek, caressing it. Nanao smiled lightly, placing her own hand on top of his.

"I think that's the first time I've seen you smile too Nanao." and he leaned in and kissed her.

Nanao kissed him back with an intensity she could not place. _Could this be…?_

A knock was suddenly heard from the front of Kyoraku's apartment. He didn't care and, disregarding the noise, continued to kiss her. Nanao pulled him down to her as they deepened the kiss, her tongue entering his mouth, mingling with his.

Another knock resounded in the hallway and Kyoraku flinched. He broke the kiss for a moment and yelled,

"Go away, I'm busy!" and he plunged back towards Nanao's mouth.

As the knock rumbled against the door a third time, Kyoraku broke again and yelled once more,

"Go away damn it! Toshirou, I'll kick your ass later!"

"Maybe you should get that." Nanao smirked. "We need to get up."

Kyoraku looked at her with puppy eyes, "But it's Saturday and we don't have to do anything today. I'd rather lay in bed with you like this than answer Toshirou…" He kissed her again, and Nanao groaned into it. Another knock rattled the door. Kyoraku growled.

She pushed him away slightly, taking him by surprise. "It's not nice to leave someone waiting like that. Besides, I need to see how Rangiku is doing."

Kyoraku sighed. "You win. Let's go." and he sat up.

As he walked out of the bedroom, he grabbed a shirt and put it on. Nanao opened his closet door and pulled out a hoodie on a hangar and put it on. Tying her hair back up into its usual position, she walked out of the bedroom to see Hitsugaya standing near the doorway speaking with Kyoraku and Rangiku sitting on the couch.

Rangiku bolted into a standing position, "Nanao! God, I'm so glad you're okay! I should have never gotten you into that, which was stupid of me. Remind me to never do that again, unless it's with you again, and we can't get as drunk as we did like last night. Good thing the guys showed up and kicked those other guys asses, that was totally stupid of us to go out and do something like – what the hell are you smiling about?"

Nanao was amused by Rangiku's rambling and looked at her cheerfully. She stepped towards her and hugged her tightly. Rangiku was taken back slightly; Nanao almost never started a hug between them.

"I'm glad you're okay Ran." and Nanao let go.

"Nanao, are you feeling okay? Did he drug you? What's going on?" Rangiku touched Nanao's head to check for fever. Putting her hands on Nanao's shoulders, she shook her slightly as if to snap her out of a trance.

"Ran, stop, I'm okay I promise. No, he didn't drug me, and nothing is really going on. You have to keep this to yourself though." Nanao lowered her voice.

Rangiku stared bug eyed at Nanao, unsure of what she was going to say.

"Ran, I'm with Kyoraku."

Rangiku's mouth dropped open, "You hypocrite! You always said to me never to date a professor! You little…" and she began to tackle Nanao.

"So she's been told now huh? I guess this time is as good as any other to tell you that Rangiku and I are together as well." said Toshirou proudly to Kyoraku.

"Like hell we are! You came in and broke up a perfectly good thing I was ABOUT to have last night little Shirou, so don't even go there!" Rangiku broke from Nanao and started on Hitsugaya.

"Hey, wait a minute, what about what happened to _us_ last night? And I thought I told you to never call me little Shirou! You should know better than anyone that I'm not little…" said Hitsugaya through strained breaths as Rangiku began to punch him and wrestle him out of the doorway.

"Glad to see you're okay Nanao, I'll see you at studio, I need to take care of this one here." said Rangiku, and Nanao saw a flash of silver hair bound towards Rangiku's face.

Tackling her into the wall, Hitsugaya shouted down the hallway toward them both, "Bye Nanao, Kyoraku, see you tomorrow!"

Kyoraku shut the door. Nanao looked at him, both ready to burst with laughter. They heard Hitsugaya yell from down the hallway,

"Rangiku! Don't be like that! Oh come on!" and a loud slamming as the door was shut behind him.

They couldn't hold it in any longer and spurts of laughter poured from the two of them. As the laughter subsided, Kyoraku looked at Nanao.

"So do you want some breakfast?" and he stepped towards her.

"Yea, I could go for some." and she unexpectedly tugged at the hoodie she was wearing. Kyoraku cocked his head sideways for a moment, a seductive grin spreading across his face.

"Yea? Well what is it that you want?" stepping even closer to her.

Nanao tugged at her tank top, pulling it up off of her head, leaving her torso exposed. She put her hands to Kyoraku's shirt, pulling it up off of his head and throwing it aside.

"What is it you think I want?" as she replied with a sultry voice, her hands dancing across his chest.

"I thought you'd never ask…" his hands stroked down her sides, picked her up, and walked back towards the bedroom.

Falling onto the bed, they grabbed for each other's clothes, pulling and pushing the fabric away to reveal the hidden skin beneath. All at once they melted; hands traveling places, fingertips memorizing muscle pattern, skin colliding with skin. Lips and tongue became reserved for the particularly sensitive places, which made the other's body tingle with desire.

Tangling themselves into the bed sheets, Kyoraku eventually pinned Nanao down. Heavy breaths turned into softened groans as he made his way inside her. Her lips found his as he began to thrust himself in faster. Softened whimpers met guttural moans as they both peaked.

"You're so cute when you try to resist, but you're absolutely adorable when you don't. And I love that little whimper you make when you finally make it." he said breathlessly.

Nanao blushed bright red when she heard about her own doings. Kyoraku chuckled lightly as she punched his arm and he turned over to pull her close. _Things change…_ she thought as she twisted into his arms and kissed him again.

* * *

I wrote this whole thing at once, and decided to finally post it... yes, this is my first write -- I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it. Nanao and Shunsui are my favorite pairing - no - probably my favorite characters. 


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